GIRLS  AND  CANNON 


.:; 


;FV 


<  i 


'Y. 


>f.» 


I 


'Q>  910.19 

jGsa 


GIRLS  AND  GANNON 


Appleton's  Journal 
July  20,  1872 


■ 


of  tfje 

UmberSttp  of  i^ortft  Carolina 


Collection  of  J2ortfj  Carolinians 

Cnootoei)  bp 

fofjn  g>prtmt  3£ill 

of  the  Class  of  1889 


&>  9(70,79- asa. 


L 


/ 


1/ 


GIRLS  AND    CANNON: 


65 


JIRLS  AND  CANNON. 

''  Not  in  such  plight  as  he  went  forth, 
Returned  Lord  Marmion  home  again  1 " 

THE  Confederacy  approached  its  end.  But, 
palpable  as  that  fact  must  have  been,  it 
yas  hidden  from  the  clouded  sight  of  many 
)f  the  dwellers  in  that  "  dream  within  a 
Iream."  I,  for  my  part — I  was  still  a  mere 
thild  of  seventeen  years,  or  so — felt  my  heart 
hrob,  and  my  bosom  swell  with  indignant 
lenial,  if  a  hint  was  whispered  that  its  exist- 
ence was  not  as  stable  as  the  everlasting 
lills.  And  this  in  the  beginning  of  April, 
865!  Even  /knew  better  before  May. 
Ah  !  with  fie  remembrance  of  those  days, 


how  the  tide  of  time  flows  back  with  me — 
"  the  forward  -  flowing  tide  of  time  " — and 
carries  me  on  its  receding  wave  into  the  old 
feverish  excitement  that  breathed  in  every 
breath,  and  spoke  in  every  word  and  look ! 
I  hear  again  and  again,  as  if  in  a  dream,  the 
names  almost  forgotten  now,  but  then  fa- 
miliar as  household  words,  of  Confederates 
and  Federals,  of  battles  and  skirmishes,  de- 
feat and  victory,  hope  from  France,  disap- 
pointment from  England,  the  quarrels  of  the 
cabinet,  and  all  the  rest  of  it. 

The  town  in  Carolina  where  I  had  taken 
refuge,  after  my  own  home  was  destroyed, 
lay  upon  what  was  supposed  would  be  the 
line  of  Sherman's  march.  He  passed  south 
of  us,  as  it  turned  out,  but  we  suffered  all 
the  thousand  deaths  of  anticipation,  though, 
from  him  at  least,  we  never  suffered  at  all,  in 
reality.  Our  household  would  have  been  an 
admirable  working-ground  for  "  Lady  Psyche 
and  Lady  Blanche."  We  saw  no  men,  not  even 
my  brother,  nor  the  numerous  kin-claiming 
soldiers  that,  in  the  earlier  part  of  the  rebel- 
lion, had  made  of  war  only  a  gay,  delightful 
change  from  the  commonplace  comforts  of 
plantation-life.  My  godmother  presided  over 
this  woman-kingdom,  and  her  subjects,  though 

few,  were  loyal.     Mrs.  General  P ,  refugee, 

with  her  two  daughters  and  myself,  comprised 
them. 

None  of  us  were  particularly  timid,  and 
it  was  well  that  we  were  not — our  unpro- 
tected condition  not  being  calculated  to 
strengthen  weak  nerves ;  but  the  news  that 
reached  us  daily,  as  the  wave  of  Sherman's 
army  came  rolling  inland  from  the  sea,  ap- 
palled us.  We  were  told  how,  night  after 
night,  along  the  line  of  that  wonderful  march, 
the  sky  was  red  with  the  light  of  burning 
villages ;  how  all  day  long  it  was  darkened 
by  the  smoke  ascending  from  the  ruins. 
Fearful  tales  of  the  tragedies  witnessed  by 
the  walls  of  solitary  houses,  hideous  visions 
of  the  agonies  and  death  of  defenceless  wom- 
en, filled  the  air  about  us,  until  the  horror  of 
it  tainted  the  very  breath  we  drew,  and 
mingled  bitterness  with  the  bread-and-water 
of  our  fasting. 

We  did  not  sleep  much  in  those  days. 
We  made  a  pretence  of  retiring,  of  course ; 
and  bade  each  other  good-night.  And  then 
would  each  haunt  the  rooms  of  the  others 
until  daylight  gave  us  some  sense  of  security 
again ;  all  the  long  night  was  there  a  flavor 
of  white  muslin  flitting  through  the  shadows  ; 
glimpses  of  ghostly  figures  leaning  intent 
near  the  windows ;  sudden  voices  whispering 
beside  the  pillows :  "  Don't  you  think  the 
sky  looks  strangely  bright  toward  the  south  ?  " 
"  Didn't  you  hear  an  odd,  unusual  sound  just 
now  1 "  "  That  long,  low  rumble,  surely  it 
must  be  cannon."  And  then,  trembling  and 
listening,  we  would  find  ourselves  mistaken — 
or,  at  least,  uncertain — and  creep  back  to  our 
beds,  to  be  startled  from  them  again  in  an 
hour.  We  had  lived  in  this  state  of  anxiety 
ever  since  the  fall  of  Fort  ilcAUister,  in  De- 
cember ;  and  the  constant  terror  of  what  might 
be — the  mightiest  terror  of  all — had  not  fitted 
us,  perhaps,  to  be  calm  judges  of  probabilities, 
when  the  news  we  had  been  expecting  came 
one  dreadful  morning  in  reality,  toward  the 
the  latter  part  of  March. 


The  day  dawned  cloudy  and  cold.  And, 
shivering  with  a  chilliness  that  seemed  rather 
to  come  from  the  heart  outward,  we  as- 
sembled round  the  breakfast-table  in  heavy 
silence.  Before  we  sat  down  we  had  heard 
the  news — discussed  it — sickened  over  it; 
there  seemed  nothing  more  worth  saying  in 
this  world.  We  had  read  the  morning  \p&"~ 
per — the  pathetic,  courageous,  half-printed, 
poor  little  brown  sheet  —  which  exhorted 
everybody  to  constancy,  and  to  constant  faith 
in  the  final  triumph  of  right  and  reason — that 
meant  the  Confederacy,  of  course ;  and  we 
had  understood  the  sinking  heart  which  beat 
in  the  editor's  bosom,  under  all  his  brave 
show  of  confident  fortitude.  (We  all  knew 
him  well,  poor  little  man  !  I  see  him  now,  in 
his  worn-out  suit  of  homespun  and  home- 
made jeans.  He  had  ten  children  and  a  sick- 
ly wife;  and,  I  should  think,  would  have 
found  a  hard-enough  struggle  of  life,  leaving 
Sherman  out  of  the  question.)  Well,  the 
news,  magnified  by  flying  scouts  to  excuse 
their  own  terror,  informed  us  that  Sherman's 
advance  was  within  ten  miles  of  the  town; 
stated  further  that  the  general  himself  had 
intended  passing  it,  leaving  it  unmolested; 
but  that  the  unappeasable  wrath  of  his  men 
against  it  and  its  inhabitants — there  was  a  Con>- 
federate  prison  within  its  limits — had  turned 
him  from  his  course  direct  to  Goldsborough, 
determining  him  to  come  hither  to  wreak 
his  reddest  vengeance  upon  the  people ;  and, 
of  the  town,  to  leave  not  one  stone  standing 
upon  another!  This  was  false,  of  course. 
The  town  was  taken,  and  in  part  burned. 
But  not  by  Sherman. 

Here  was  the  realization  of  all  our  terrors 
indeed !  And  knowing  no  better — having  no 
possible  means  of  knowing  better — we  be- 
lieved it. 

At  first,  as  I  said,  there  was  unbroken, 
heavy-hearted  silence  around  the  table.  Un- 
touched the  coffee — made  of  parched  pota- 
toes— untasted  the  corn-bread  and  hominy. 
But  the  miserable,  unspoken  heart-sickness 
was  broken  by  a  sudden  dictum  from  my  dear 
godmother,  a  small,  nervous  woman,  with  a 
keen  eye  of  the  color,  and  a  true  heart  of  the 
temper,  of  Damascus  steel.  She  turned  with 
her  accustomed  decision  to  Mrs.  P : 

"  Whatever  happens,  Caroline,"  she  said, 
"  these  girls  must  not  stay  here.  There  is 
not  a  man  about  the  place  to  even  attempt 
their  defence  if  it  should  be  necessary.  They 
must  go,  and  you  must  take  them,  and  you 
must  take  them  at  once — now.  I  am  an  old 
woman,  and  have  not  much  to  fear ;  I  shall 
stay  where  I  am,  and  do  what  I  can  to  take 
care  of  my  home." 

Mrs.  P answered  quietly,  but  she  was 

very  pale : 

"  One  place  is  as  safe  as  another,  my 
friend.    We  will  remain  together." 

"  We  will  do  nothing  of  the  sort,"  said 
my  godmother,  rising.  "  The  Western  Kail- 
road  is  open  yet.  Every  one  who  can  go,  is 
leaving  town,  and  you  ought  to  be  among 

them.     If  you  can  reach  S "  (a  village 

some  thirty  miles  distant),  "  you  will  be  com- 
paratively safe.  It  is  a  poor  place,  and  hid- 
den among  the  hills.  There  is  nothing  there 
to  tempt  the  soldiers,  and  no  cause  for  ven- 
geance.   Go  there,  if  you  can  get  there.    Make 


1 


\ 


GIRLS  AND    GANNON. 


|  JUIT  Su 


the  attempt,  at  any  rate.  You  cannot  be 
worse  off  than  here,  and  you  may  be  better. 
And  may  the  Lord  speed  you  !  " 

There  was  no  withstanding  my  godmoth- 
er's determination.  There  rarely  was,  in- 
deed. God  bless  her,  and  send  her  length  of 
happy  days  !  She  is  to-day,  as  she  long  has 
:— been,  one  of  the  noblest  of  serene  -  souled, 
high-hearted  women.  God  bless  her,  from  my 
heart,  I  pray — the  heart  that  she  has  com- 
forted in  sore  affliction  many  a  time,  and  that 
has  seldom  known  a  deeper  sorrow  than  in 
its  long  exile  from  her  ! 

So  well  did  her  resolution  work,  that  in 
ten  minutes  more  we  were  as  busy  with  our 
hasty  preparations  for  flight  as  if  we  had 
looked  forward  to  it  for  a  week.  We  were 
excited  to  the  point  of  absolute  quietude. 
But,  in  spite  of  steady  nerves,  our  packing 
was  a  curious  specimen  of  that  difficult  art. 
We  simplified  it  exceedingly,  tossing  our 
treasures  in  piles  into  trunks,  and  then  totter- 
ing on  the  perilous  apex,  standing  on  them, 
and  stamping  on  them,  until  they  consolidated 
themselves  sufficiently  to  allow  the  lid  to  fit 
in  its  place,  and  the  key  to  turn  in  the  lock. 
It  was  next  to  impossible  to  get  any  thing  to 
wear  in  those  days — black  particularly ;  the 
--demand  for  it  far  exceeding  any  possible  sup- 
ply. In  spite  of  difficulties,  however,  I — I 
was  in  deep  mourning — had  lately  succeeded 
in  procuring  two  new  dresses,  and,  oh,  how 
dearly  precious  they  were  in  my  eyes  ! — one 
being  a  sort  of  brownish-black  serge,  quite 
coarse  enough  to  shoot  straws  through  with- 
out injuring  the  texture,  which  I  had  thought 
deliriously  cheap  at  three  hundred  dollars  a 
yard ;  the  other  an  alpaca,  almost  decent,  at 
the  very  moderate  charge  of  three  thousand 
two  hundred  for  the  pattern.  The  vendor 
had  taken  care  to  let  me  know  it  was  sold 
thus  cheaply  because  one  end  was  not  per- 
fect, having  been  wet  with  salt-water  during 
its  passage  through  the  underground  railroad. 
Even  these  invaluable  toilets  shared  the 
universal  fate.  But  France,  and  Carrie,  and 
I,  had  each  some  valuable  jewels,  souvenirs 
of  other  days,  and  we  wasted  some  precious 
minutes  considering  what  to  do  with  them. 
Should  we  divide  the  chances,  and  leave 
them?  No,  said  my  godmother,  emphatical- 
ly. Her  house  was  the  handsomest  in  the 
town,  and  in  case  of  a  general  pillage  it  would 
go  among  the  first.  Should  we  secure  them 
in  "  pads,"  and  wear  them  ourselves  ?,  By 
no  means  !  If  we  fell  into  the  hands  of  any 
of  the  roving  bands  belonging  to  the  main 
army,  the  most  trivial  cause  for  suspicion 
would  result  in  the  insult  of  a  personal  search. 
Alas !  with  many  a  prophetic  sigh,  we  put 
them  into  our  trunks  with  the  rest. 

The  trunks  themselves  were  presently 
tossed  into  the  baggage  -  cart,  and  we  and 
they  were  at  the  nearest  station  within  an 
hour  from  the  time  that  the  council  of  war 
had  hastily  approved  a  retreat. 

There  somebody  in  authority  informed  us 
that  the  last  train  had  left  ten  minutes  before. 

I  can  see  Mrs.  P 's  pale,  noble  face  at 

this  moment.  The  mere  fact  of  deciding  to 
leave  had  impressed  us  all  with  its  absolute 
necessity.  We  three  girls  looked  each  at  the 
other,  and  then,  dismayed,  at  our  conductress. 
Mrs.  !?■ wrung  her  hands. 


"  My  God  !  "  she  cried ;  "  what  shall  we 
do?" 

"  It  ain't  no  sort  of  use  your  trying  to  get 
away,  ma'am,"  said  the  station-master,  kindly. 
He  was  well  frightened  himself,  by-the-way. 
"  If  there  was  fifty  trains  leaving,  you  couldn't 
get  far.     Listen  to  that !  " 

Ah !  we  heard  it  at  last !  The  sound  we 
had  imagined  and  dreamed  of  so  long  fell 
upon  our  ears  at  last,  verified  in  an  instant 
— the  distant,  dull  roar  that  seemed  to  rise 
from  some  unimagined  depth  beneath  our 
very  feet.  It  was  the  cannonading  at  last. 
Every  cheek  blanched,  though  three  of  us 
had  been  under  fire  before. 

"Where  is  it?"  Mrs.  P asked,  al- 
most whispering. 

"There's  no  telling,  ma'am.  It  comes 
from  the  south,  of  course — the  way  Sherman 
is  coming.  But  how  near,  or  how  far,  there 
is  no  telling.  The  wind  is  very  still  to-day, 
and  in  a  calm  like  this  you  can  hear  a  long 
way." 

Mrs.  P considered  a  minute  in  silence, 

the  station-master  eying  her  with  eyes  en- 
larged by  a  vision  of  balls,  and  chewing  a 
straw,  we  girls  holding  our  dresses  from  off 
the  damp,  dirty  floor,  and  waiting. 

"  The  sound  of  the  firing  comes  from  the 
south,  and  may  come  from  a  great  distance," 
she  said,  with  sudden  decision.  "We  are 
going  west,  if  we  can  go  at  all. — Mr.  Brown, 
if  there  is  any  thing  still  to  have — fiats,  bag- 
gage-cars, freight-cars,  any  thing — we  will  go. 
See,  if  you  please,  and  let  us  know." 

He  went,  and  returned  in  five  minutes. 

"  There  is  the  last  freight-train  just  leav- 
ing, madam.  But  my  advice,  such  as  it  is, 
is,  stay  where  you  are.  That  there  train  is 
just  as  sure  to  be  took  and  burnt  as  this 
world  is  at  the  day  of  judgment.  They'll 
take  the  town,  too ;  I  know  that.  But  it'll 
be  better  for  you — you  are  four  women,  all 
alone,  ain't  you  ?  "  he  interrupted  himself,  as 
this  appalling  fact  thrust  itself  upon  his  ob- 
servation. 

"  Yes,  we  are,"  said  Mrs.  P ,  almost 

laughing  even  at  that  minute — the  man  looked 
so  ludicrously  dismayed.  "But  what  of 
that  ?  " 

"  What  of  that  ?  Good  God  !  Pour  wom- 
en rushing  out  to  meet  an  army,  and  asking 
me,  '  What  of  that  ? '  But  they'll  do  what 
they've  a  mind,  in  spite  of  the. devil  himself." 

At  this  he  seemed  to  despair  of  the  power 
of  argument.  He  shook  his  head  with  slow 
despondency,  and  walked  off,  muttering. 

In  perhaps  ten  minutes  after  this  we  found 
ourselves  placed  oddly  enough.  The  train 
was  a  freight-train,  as  I  said.  There  were  no 
more  passenger-cars,  every  one  having  been 
called  into  requisition  hours  before.  Into  a 
freight-car  it  was  impossible  we  could  bestow 
ourselves,  unless  we  could  do  without  air  as 
well  as  light.  Accordingly,  we  were  placed 
in  a  nondescript,  attached  for  our  especial 
behoof,  whoso  ordinary  purpose  was  carrying 
live-stock — but  not  of  our  sort,  as  a  rule — 
and  which  looked  a  good  deal  like  a  square 
chicken-coop  on  wheels.  We  seated  ourselves 
on  some  canvas  bags  that  the  courtesy  of 
the  engineer  had  fished  up  from  some  un- 
imagined storehouse  of  bags,  and  spread 
upon  the  dirty  floor  for  our  convenience,  the 


boards  in  the  said  floor  being  so  far  aparl 
by-the-way,  that  we  had  to  use  a  great  des 
of  diplomacy  to  prevent  our  feet  being  caugb 
in  the  crevices.  Thus,  on  the  floor,  our  knee 
drawn  up  under  our  chins,  and  our  arm 
around  them  the  better  to  support  ourselvei 
we  sat  and  stared  at  each  other.  Then,  bein 
neither  heroines  nor  angels,  but  only  girl: 
with  the  inherent  weaknesses  thereof,  th 
ridiculousness  of  our  position  set  us  gigglinj 

"  Upon  my  word,  this   is   funny,"  crie 
France.     "I  wonder  if  I  look  most  like 
duck  or  a  turkey  ?  " 

"  You  behave  much  more  like  a  goose, 
said  Carrie,  reproachfully.  "  To  be  sayin 
such  things,  with  sounds  like  that  in  yoi 
ears ! " 

For  all  this  time  the  voice  of  the  canno 
pursued  us  ;  and,  as  the  cars  ran  very  muc 
at  their  leisure — rotten  ties  and  Federal  bayi 
nets  presenting  a  delicately-balanced  altemi 
tive — the  noise  of  the  train  did  little  to  mil 
gate  the  long,  slow,  thunderous  sound,  whicl 
in  spite  of  our  increasing  distance,  seemed  1 
grow  more  and  more  distinct  every  minute. 

"  Girls,  pray  don't  laugh  so ! "  said  Mr 

P directly.     "  You  know  nothing  of  tl 

danger   into   which  we   may   be    going- 

cannot  tell — and  such  levity  distresses  m 

'  Oh,  thank  Heaven !  we  are  away  in  time  ! " 

She  uttered  this  ejaculation  fervently,  ; 
a   loud   report,   followed   immediately   by 
sharp  volley  from  small-arms,  arrested  01 
foolish  talking. 

For  one  moment  longer  we  thought  tl 
firing  was  at  the  town  we  had  just  left,  on 
heard  with  wonderful  distinctness.  Our  excl 
mations  were  hardly  uttered  when  the  trai 
which  had  been  running  with  constantl, 
decreasing  speed,  came  to  a  sudden  stan 
still.  Instantly  our  hearts  were  in  01 
mouths ;  we  turned  simultaneously  to  loc 
out  between  the  loosely-boarded  sides  of  tl 
cage  that  held  us. 

In  the  low,  marshy  green  field  lying  b 
low  the  high  embankment — it  was  a  hill 
country,  and  there  were  many  such — we 
breastworks,  hastily  thrown  up;  two  or  thr 
small  field-pieces,  unlimbered  and  ready  f 
action ;  and  a  hundred  or  two  men  in  Co 
federate  gray.  What  they  were  put  there  f 
remains  as  much  a  mystery  to  the  prese 
hour  as  it  was  at  that  minute. 

Somebody  in  a  lieutenant's  uniform  car 
forward  and  spoke  to  the  engineer.  Listenii 
with  eyes  and  heart  and  ears,  we  heard,  ala 

"Don't  go  any  farther,"  said  the  he 
tenant.  "  Yanks  are  ahead — ten  thousai 
strong." 

"  Goin'  back,  then,"  calmly  said  the  e 
gineer,  who  practised  at  least  one  Spart; 
virtue — brevity. 

"  Better   stay  where   you  are,"   said  t' 
lieutenant,  argumentatively.     "  They  are 
front  and  rear — Stoneman's  raid  from  Te 
nessee ! " 

That  was  it,  you  see.  We  had  fled  fr. 
Sherman,  who  was  not  coming  at  all,  and  h 
thrown  ourselves  into  Stoneman's  arms ! 

Well,  I  am  glad  to  remember  that,  wh 
the  moment  finally  came  which  we  had  »| 
long   anticipated  with   such   bitter  dread,  tj 
found  us  very  quiet  and   sensible.     Afteij^ 
few  moments  of  helpless  expectancy  on  ct 


y 


•£72.] 


aiBLS  AND   GANNON. 


67 


part,  somebody  came  to  the  door,  or  rather 
to  the  open  space  at  the  end  of  the  arrange- 
ment in  which  we  were,  and  told  us  that  we 
must  descend  the  embankment,  our  position 
being  one  of  peril  in  case  of  sudden  firing, 
,  adding  that  an  attack  was  momently  expected, 
and  that  there  had  been  desultory  firing  all 
the  morning. 

Whoever  he  was,  this  man  was  a  gentle- 
man by  nature.  I  shall  never  forget  his  kind- 
ness. It  was  not  much,  indeed,  that  he 
could  do ;  but  that  he  did. 

"  I'm  sorry  for  the  chance  that  brings  you 
here,  ladies,"  said  he,  helping  us  down  from 
the  car.  "  Tou  see  we  can't  make  much  of  a 
fight,  our  men  can't;  there  ain't  enough  of 
us.  I  fear  you  will  be  prisoners  before  long. 
But  take  things  quietly,  and  you'll  get  through 
all  right,  no  doubt." 

"  What  are  the  men  here  for,  if  they  can't 
make  much  of  a  fight  ?  "  France  asked,  per- 
tinently, and  impertinently,  too,  I  fear.  "  If 
they  defend  themselves,  they  will  protect  us." 

"They'll  hardly  do  either,  miss,"  said  the 
man,  quietly  touching  his  cap.  "  We  are  just 
put  here  as  a  sort  of  sop  for  a  half-hour  or 
so.  The  general  hopes  to  get  off  with  the 
ammunition-wagons,  if  we  can  stop  the  ad- 
vance of  the  Yankees  long  enough.  Most  of 
us  are  standing  on  our  own  graves  to-day, 
Miss." 

Then  we  began  the  descent.  We  did  not 
talk  much.  There  was  an  ache  in  our  throats, 
I  think,  that  would  have  made  crying  easier 
than  talking,  after  that  last  simple  phrase  of 
the  man  who  was  helping  us. 

That  embankment  was  three  hundred  feet 
high ;  at  least,  /  am  firmly  persuaded  that  it 
was ;  red  clay  on  the  surface — oh,  the  dear 
old  Carolina  clay !  how  my  eyes  and  my  heart 
have  ached  for  a  sight  of  you ! — and,  as  it 
had  been  raining  for  three  days,  and  was  still 
drizzling,  it  was  now  red  mud  through  to 
level  ground.  For  once  in  my  life,  I  was  or- 
thodox in  regard  to  the  material  of  which  I 
was  made.  By  the  time  we  reached  the  bot- 
tom of  the  hill,  it  was  patent  to  every  sense 
that  we  were  but  "  children  of  clay." 

Once  there,  our  kind  conductor  found 
some  tolerably  clean  stones  for  us  to  sit 
upon;  and,  duty  calling  him,  he  touched  his 
shabby  gray  cap  with  grave  respect,  and  went 
his  way.  Duty  called  him  a  long  distance 
that  day.  Two  hours  after,  I  saw  that  poorly- 
clad,  weather-beaten  figure  lying  prone  upon 
the  grass — very  still.  A  red  gash  was  across 
the  temples;  and  the  honest,  brown  face — 
grown  strangely  pallid — was  turned  toward 
the  sky,  whither  his  soul  had  fled,  pray  God  ! 

It  was  heavy  work,  meantime,  waiting,  out 
there  in  the  rain,  for  whatever  allotment  the 
future  might  have  in  store.  And  though,  as 
I  said,  we  were  very  quiet  and  well  behaved, 
all  things  considered,  I  was  glad  when  the 
unmistakable  signs  of  action  began  to  appear 
about  us. 

We  were  seated  immediately  at  the  foot, 
and  to  the  right  of  the  embankment,  and 
were,  of  course,  to  some  extent,  protected  by 
it.  Just  in  front  of  us  was  a  deep  ravine, 
spanned  by  a  stone  bridge  with  three  arches 
— the  skirmish  following  was  afterward  called 
locally  the  battle  of  Stone  Bridge— and  the 
Confederate  troops,  not  more  than  two  or 


three  hundred  in  number,  were  posted  a  very 
considerable  distance  behind  us,  quite  at  the 
head  of  the  rise  from  the  ravine,  the  ascent 
being  crowned  by  a  masked  battery  of  eight 
or  ten  pieces.  Our  position  was  a  singularly 
unfortunate  one.  But,  in  the  confusion  and 
hurry,  I  suppose,  very  little  was  thought 
about  us;  and  we,  like  Moore's  oak,  were 
"left  where  we   lay."      Nobody  knew  until 

afterward  that  Mrs.  General  P (a  person 

of  much  consideration  in  those  clays)  was  one 
of  the  ladies  thus  singularly  situated. 

Suddenly — "  Look  yonder !  "  whispered 
France,  her  eyes  intent,  and  her  lips  white. 

It  was  the  Federal  cavalry  appearing  on 
the  ridge  on  the  other  side  of  the  ravine. 

At  first  there  was  a  little  desultory  firing, 
which,  to  our  untutored  eyes,  appeared  to 
have  no  especial  purpose,  and  to  accomplish 
none.  • 

Then  there  was  silence — a  breathless  si- 
lence to  us— for  a  few  minutes ;  for,  by  the 
thrill  in  the  air,  the  hush  of  expectancy  be- 
hind us,  the  movements — ordered,  no  doubt, 
but  not  understood  among  us — of  excitement 
in  front,  we  knew  that  the  stillness  was  preg- 
nant with  fate.  A  yell  from  the  Federal  lines 
broke  it. 

Then  there  followed  a  glorious  and  a  fear- 
ful sight.  If,  when  I  reach  the  golden  rest  of 
heaven,  no  other  sight  or  sound  remains  with 
me  from  these  misty  flats  of  earth,  that  will ! 
The  might  and  the  power  of  it  entered  into 
my  soul. 

The  Federal  cavalry  formed,  and  charged 
the  battery. 

Like  a  fierce  and  furious  torrent  they 
swept,  yelling,  down  the  hill-side,  and,  borne 
up  again  by  the  impetus  of  their  descent,  the 
thunders  of  the  horses  feet,  the  lightning  of 
their  flashing  sabres,  the  storm-cloud  of  war 
swirled  past  us  up  the  hill. 

Then  the  cannon  woke.  For  a  moment 
the  charge  faltered.  The  officer  leading  it 
half  turned,  rallying  his  men.  He  rose  in  his 
stirrups,  waving  his  sabre  about  his  head, 
cheering  his  men  on — magnificent  wrath  in 
his  eyes  and  in  his  ringing  voice.  At  the  in- 
stant the  warm  words  fell  from  dead  lips ;  the 
sabre  flashed,  and  dropped  heavily  from  dead 
hands.  The  officer  reeled  and  fell  like  a  log ; 
his  foot  caught  in  the  stirrup. 

Then  a  sound,  such  as  may  be  heard  in 
hell,  perhaps,  but  has  no  other  echo  on  earth, 
sprang  with  one  impulse  from  all  those  brazen 
throats.  The  fury  of  death  and  vengeance 
was  in  it.  The  cavalry  tore  forward,  heedless 
of  the  thundering  cannon.  They  reached  the 
battery  in  a  moment  more. 

I  covered  my  face  with  my  hands,  and  my 
sick  heart  tried  to  pray. 

In  five  minutes  the  work  was  done.  The 
guns  were  spiked,  the  position  taken,  the 
hundred  or  two,  put  there  as  a  sop,  had  ful- 
filled their  mission,  and  were  either  dead  or 
prisoners. 

We  were  of  the  latter.  For  perhaps  fifteen 
minutes  nobody  took  any  especial  notice  of 
us;  only  some  German  soldiers  strolled  up, 
and  walked  around  us,  regarding  us  curiously, 
and  making  now  and  then  short  ejaculations 
in  the  honeyed  accents  of  their  native  tongue. 
They  appeared  to  regard  us  as  curiosities  in- 
digenous to  the  country,  made  to  be  stared  at. 


Presently  an  officer  came  up,  saluted  us  very  - 
politely,  and   inquired   what  we  were  doing 

there.     Mrs.  P informed  him,  told  him 

who  we  were,  and  said,  smilingly,  that,  en- 
deavoring to  escape  Sherman,  we  had  unin- 
tentionally thown  ourselves  upon  Stoneman's 
protection. 

The  officer  said, "  Yes  ?  hum ! "  and  looked 
at  us  scrutinizingly.     We  were  very  mud\ty— :  " 
we   girls — and  we   may  have   blushed,   vfie 
smiled. 

Presently  he  remarked  that  we  had  better 
come  "  farther  up,"  and  he  would  see  what 
provision  could  be  made  for  us.  We  followed 
him  very  meekly,  and,  arriving  "  farther  up," 
found  the  said  provision  to  consist  of  the 
soaked  trunk  of  a  fallen  tree,  and  an  um- 
brella ;  we  were  politely  requested  to  seat 
ourselves  upon  the  tree — which  we  did  with 
what  grace  was  possible  under  the  circum- 
stances— and  a  soldier  was  stationed  behind 
us  to  hold  the  umbrella.  Upon  consideration, 
I  think  this  umbrella  must  have  been  intro- 
duced principally  to  suggest  the  large  re- 
sources of  the  Federal  army.  A  nation  which 
provided  such  superfluities  as  this  for  its 
troops,  would  indubitably  supply  them  well 
with  every  imaginative  requisite.  The  um- 
brella was  certainly  superfluous,  possessing, 
as  it  did,  the  unusual  property  of  distributing 
more  rain  to  those  beneath  its  protection  than 
was  the  portion  of  outsiders. 

Two  or  three  other  officers  now  gathered 
about  us,  and  began  a  conversation  which 
was,  on  their  part,  chiefly  interrogatory.  They 
were   evidently  suspicious   of  us.     They  did 

not  believe  Mrs.  P was  Mrs.  P .   They 

could  not  credit  that  we  were  mere  foolish 
refugees  rushing  from  one  danger  into  an- 
other; or,  as  I  heard  an  honest  Georgia 
"cracker"  express  it  afterward,  "jumpin' 
outen  one  ash-corner  into  another  wus'  ash- 
corner  ! "  I  don't  know  whether  they  sus- 
pected masked  batteries  in  our  pockets,  or 
concealed  dispatches  in  our  hair,  but  evident- 
ly they  were  quite  persuaded  of  something  in 
Denmark  very  rotten  indeed.  However,  by 
dint  of  simple  and  truthful  answers,  I  think 
our  cross-questioners  were  finally  persuaded 
that  we  might  perhaps  be  what  we  represented 
ourselves.  And,  finally,  leaving  a  guard  for 
us— think  how  honored  we  felt,  with  drawn 
bayonets  on  each  side  of  us ! — they  busied 
themselves  about  more  important  matters. 

The  freight-train  had,  of  course,  by  this 
time,  been  ransacked,  and  partly  burned.  And, 
throwing  my  disconsolate  eyes  around,  what 
did  I  now  behold  ?  Half-way  down  the  hill, 
upside  down,were  my  beloved  trunks,  the  bot- 
toms ruthlessly  pierced  with  bayonets,  and 
thus  broken  and  torn  off;  their  spotless  (once, 
alas  !)  contents  strewed  over  the  muddy  grass, 
while  a  disorderly  group  of  Germans  and 
common  Boldiers  examined  the  various  arti- 
cles,  grinning  over  some,  appropriating  others, 
and  destroying  what  they  did  not  want.  My 
serge — my  brown-black  three-hundred-dollars- 
a-yard  beauty — my  sweet  alpaca,  dirt  cheap  at 
three  thousand!  My  heart  bleeds  to  recall 
their  fate.  First,  two  miscreants  triad  them 
on,  amid  uproars  of  applause ;  and,  not  find- 
ing the  fit  perfect,  they  then  deliberately  tore 
them  in  strips  from  the  hem  to  the  waist,  and 
walked  about  with  a   hundred   broad,  black 


// 


68 


MONTE   CITORIO.— THE  HIDDEN  TREASURE. 


strings  dangling  and  flying  around  their  army 
trousers.  I  hare  lived  through  a  great  deal 
of  pain  and  bitterness,  but  I  don't  know  that 
I  can  recall  a  more  poignant  moment  than  that. 

Meantime  the  greater  part  of  Stoneman's 
command  pushed  forward  and  entered  the 
town  we  had  left — where,  fortunately,  no  re- 
sistance was  attempted — at  about  two  o'clock 
'  in  the  afternoon. 

It  was  nearly  four,  perhaps,  when  an  officer 
in  major's  uniform  rode  up  and  informed  us 
that,  inquiries  regarding  us  having  resulted 
satisfactorily,  we  were  graciously  permitted  to 
go  home  again. 

Finally,  minus  every  thing — serge,  alpaca, 
underclothes,  clothes,  and  jewels — minus  all 
save  mud,  that  dismal  quartet  was  crowded 
upon  a  hand-car,  and  two  brawny  contrabands 
patiently  turned  the  crank  for  the  refugee 
prisoners — and  for  a  consideration — until  we 
reached  the  captured  town;  then,  through 
the  alien  blue-dotted  streets  we  wended  our 
way  back  to  my  godmother's,  no  way  sadder 
nor  wiser,  but  considerably  worse  off  than 
when  we  left  her  doors. 


MONTE  CITORIO. 

THE  Italian  Parliament,  since  its.  removal 
to  Rome  last  year,  holds  its  sessions  in 
the  Palazzo  di  Monte  Citorio.  This  Monte 
Citorio  is  not  one  of  the  natural  hills  of 
Rome,  but  a  small  elevation  created  by  the 
debris  of  an  ancient  amphitheatre.  It  is  just 
in  the  rear  of  the  Piazza  Colonna,  on  the 
Corso. 

The  word  Citorio  is  an  abbreviation  of  Ac- 
ceptorio,  by  which,  for  some  not  clearly  under- 
stood reason,  the  hill  was  formerly  called. 
On  the  summit  of  the  gentle  elevation  is  the 
Piazza  Citorio,  a  small,  open  space,  in  the 
centre  of  which  stands  an  Egyptian  obelisk, 
brought  to  Rome  by  the  Emperor  Augustus, 
and  erected  at  first  in  the  Campo  Mazzo. 
Here  it  was  overthrown,  and  got  buried  and 
forgotten.  It  was  discovered  in  1748,  and 
was  afterward  placed  where  it  now  stands. 

It  is  of  red  granite,  sixty-eight  feet  high, 
covered  with  hieroglyphics  that  are  wonder- 
fully distinct,  considering  that  they,  were  cut 
three  thousand  years  ago,  in  the  reign  of 
Psammetichus  I. 

On  the  north  side  of  this  piazza  stands  the 
palazzo.  It  is  an  immense  and  imposing  edi- 
fice, begun  in  1742,  from  the  designs  of  the 
famous  Bernini,  who  has  left  so  many  archi- 
tectural monuments  in  Rome.  This  palace 
has  long  been  appropriated  as  the  seat  of  the 
higher  courts  of  law.  Here  also  were  the 
offices  of  the  papal  notaries,  auditors,  cham- 
berlains, and  treasurers.  A  large  court,  or- 
namented with  a  fountain,  is  in  the  rear  of  the 
spacious  building,  and  its  lofty  stories,  its 
central,  light,  and  airy  situation,  marked  it 
out  as  a  fit  place  for  the  halls  of  the  Italian 
Parliament. 

To  prepare  it  for  this  purpose,  large  as- 
sembly and  senate  rooms  have  been  made, 
with  appropriate  offices  and  committee  apart- 
ments. Here  the  king,  Victor  Emmanuel,  pro- 
nounced his  first  address  in  Rome,  amid  an 
enthusiasm  which  fitly  signalizes  one  of  the 
most  memorable  epochs  in  Italian  history. 


In  the  choice  of  a  location  for  the  assem- 
bling of  the  first  Italian  Parliament,  doubtless 
there  was  a  wish  with  some  to  go  to  the  old 
Roman  capitol,  on  the  top  of  the  Capitoline 
Hill.  What  associations  throng  around  that 
spot !  Here  victorious  generals  were  received 
in  triumph,  and  orators  like  Cicero  poured 
forth  their  immortal  eloquence,  and  the  Cssars 
governed  the  whole  world. 

But  the  edifices  which  now  crown  tnat 
summit  are  comparatively  small.  They  are 
museums  of  art,  and  are  crowded  with  statues 
and  paintings.  The  present  Italian  Govern- 
ment wastes  nothing  on  mere  sentiment.  It 
is  inspired  by  that  Tuscan  mind  which  is  to 
Italy  what  New  England  is  to  the  United 
States.  It  moves  forward  to  its  proposed 
ends  with  the  most  direct,  practical  common- 
sense.  The  time  may  come  when  a  new  Par- 
liament-house, erected  on  the  Capitoline  Hill, 
may  connect  a  great  modern  kingdom  with 
the  ancient  glories  of  empire. 


THE  HIDDEN  TREASURE. 


I  IN  the  early  dawn  did  idly  stand — 
Lord  of  the  harvest  came,  and,  in  my  hand 
Placing  this  lamp,  said :  "  Lo,  within  the  land 
A  lavish  treasure  seek,  and  thou  shalt  find." 
With  trembling  hand  the  little  lamp  I  shield, 
Searching  with  eager    eyes  through   all  the 

field— 
The  task  seems  hopeless.    Will  it  ever  yield 
The  looked-for  treasure  to  my  heart  and 
mind? 

The  reapers,  singing,  press  on  either  side, 
The  fields  of  golden  grain  spread  broad  and 

wide. 
"We  feed  the  hungry!"    that  one  passing 

cried. 
I  shield  my  little  lamp  and  trembling  stand ; 
I  dare  not  think  of  those  that  cry  for  bread — 
From   gleaming  of  the  scythes  I   turn   my 

head. 
They  mock  me  now,  but  shall  be  glad  instead 
When  I  the  treasure  find  hid  in  the  land. 

Some  sport  upon  the  borders  of  the- field, 
Plucking  the  flowers  their  sunny  path  doth 

yield ; 
They  strive,  in  sport,  to  break  the  lamp  I 

shield, 
Laughing  with 'sunny  eyes  and  dimpling 

cheek. 
And  now  again  I  hear  the  reapers'  song ; 
With   glowing   eyes   they   bear   their   grain 

along, 
Bound  up  in  sheaves.    Their  work  is  brave 

and  strong. 
With   downcast  eyes   the  treasure  hid  I 

seek. 

"Where  are  your  fruits?  Behold  our  sheaves 

of  grain. 
Why  seek  ye  that  which  ye    shall  seek  in 

vain?" 
I  only  turn  my  head  away  in  pain, 

To   hear   the  words   the    passing   reaper 

saith. 
I  have  no  answer,  hut  still  dumbly  stand, 
Shielding  the  little  lamp  with  trembling  hand, 
And  seek  the  treasure  hidden  in  the  land. 
Lord  of  the  harvest,  give  Thy  servant  faith. 

Maeia  R.  Oaxey. 


I 


// 


>> 


"ram 


UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


00032770056 

FOR  USE  ONLY  IN 
THE  NORTH  CAROLINA  COLLECTION 


«  I. 


A 


I 

SI  H 


■  ..tBm     ■ 


■n 


f  -'/p-7- 


:^v    >\fc 


M 


